Expert available to discuss Williams’ apparent suicide

BUFFALO, N.Y. – “People with alcohol and drug
addictions are at greater risk for depression and suicide, even
when they’re in recovery,” says Richard D. Blondell,
MD, vice chair of addiction medicine and professor of family
medicine at the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and
Biomedical Sciences.

“We don’t know why that’s the case, but
it’s possible that the genes that predispose individuals to
addiction may also predispose them to mood disorders,”
Blondell says.

An expert in addiction medicine, Blondell directs the National
Center for Physician Training in Addiction Medicine, established
last year by the American Board of Addiction Medicine Foundation
(ABAMF), thanks to a $2 million grant from the Conrad N. Hilton
Foundation.

Blondell, a physician who sees patients through UBMD, founded
the UB Department of Family Medicine’s addiction fellowship,
one of 19 postgraduate addiction medicine residencies in the
U.S. In addition to his expertise in addiction medicine
education, Blondell studies alcoholism and the relationship between
chronic pain and addiction.